Additionally, the suit actors for Kyoryuger are Yoshifumi Oshikawa (Red Buster) as KyoryuRed, Yasuhiro Takeuchi (Blue Buster) as KyoryuBlack, Masashi Takada (GokaiBlue) as KyoryuBlue, Kousuke Asai (Cheeda Nick) as KyoryuGreen, and Mizuho Nogawa (GokaiPink) as KyoryuPink.
The Devoss Army is now on the move to revive their master, which Torin and the ZyuDenChi sealed during the ancient times.

Now, the safety of the Earth relies in the hand of the five champions. The magnificent Kyoryuger's Brave Battle has just begun!
Directed by Koichi Sakamoto (Kamen Rider Fourze) and written by Riku Sanjo (Kamen Rider W), Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger premieres February 17th.

The touring programme of Japanese films from February to March will begin at London's ICA cinema, followed by venues around the country. The programme includes the Mad House anime film Mai Mai Miracle, and Takashi Miike's live-actionNinja Kids!!!, adapted from an anime series. (See below for more details of these two titles.)

Queen's Film Theatre, Belfast: February 22 - 28, including Ninja Kids!!! on February 23 and 24; Mai Mai Miracle on February 24.

Filmhouse, Edinburgh: March 1 - March 7, including Mai Mai Miracle on March 2 and Ninja Kids!!! on March 6.

Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle Upon Tyne: March 3 to March 24, including Mai Mai Miracle on March 17 and Ninja Kids!!! on March 24.

Watershed, Bristol: March 8 - 16, including Mai Mai Miracle on March 9 and Ninja Kids!!! on March 16.

Broadway, Nottingham: March 22 - 27, including Mai Mai Miracle on March 23.

Directed by Sunao Katabuchi, Mai Mai Miracle is adapted from Nobuko Takagi's Mai Mai Miracle (Mai Mai Shinko to Sennen no Mahō) novel. The story is set in 1955 in a town in southwestern Japan, where a nine-year-old girl named Shinko has an ancient family connection to a thousand-year-old province known as Suō. Shinko joins Kiiko, a new transfer student from her school, on a magical adventure.

Directed by Takashi Miike,Ninja Kids!!! is a live-action film adaptation of the long-running children's anime and manga Nintama Rantaro. In the film, Rantaro (8 year-old actor Seishirō Katō) and his fellow ninja apprentices train at an elite ninja academy and face various challenges and eccentric characters. The anime began in 1993 and ran for 19 seasons and about 1,500 episodes on NHK.

The tour programme, called "Once Upon a Time in Japan." is organised by the Japan Foundation.

FAB CAFE Leeds posted the following message on its facebook page, regarding an event on Thursday January 31 at 8 p.m. (There is a map showing the cafe's location at the link.)
Game Headrow and FAB CAFE Leeds are holding a 18+ launch party for Studio Ghiblis and Namco's Ni No Kuni Wrath Of The White Witch.
There will be a Ghibli based cosplay competition with prizes provided by Game for the the top three entrants.

A Playstation playable NI NO KUNI demo.
Studio Ghibli movies will be playing in the background for your enjoyment.
Members of Game staff will be on hand to answer any game related questions.
In the comments on the page, it was added that there will also be a Ghibli quiz, with prizes donated by Game.

The seventh instalment in our series looking at events leading to the creation of a true TV legend.As stated inour previous feature, having joined the BBC in December 1962 as its new Head of Television Drama,Sydney Newmanhad been somewhat dismayed from the off, feeling that most of the directors, although perfectly nice people, were stuck in old-fashioned ways. He needed to implement long-overdue changes to re-energise the department - and a newly-published report helped the "new broom" do just that.ThePilkington Committee, chaired by glass magnateSir Harry Pilkington, had been appointed inJuly 1960to look into the organisation of the entire broadcasting industry and programmes. It eventually reported inJune 1962, and among its recommendations it said that the BBC should be awarded a second national TV channel as an alternative to what was perceived as a populist approach by the BBC (whose Television Service had begun regularly-scheduled electronically-scanned programmes on 2nd November 1936 and was renamed and restyled BBC tv in 1960) and its commercial rival ITV (which began broadcasting on 22nd September 1955, initially in the London area). As a result, BBC2 (as it was originally styled) would be launched on 20th April 1964, with BBC tv becoming BBC1.Then, inJanuary 1963- 50 years ago this month - Newman received some very welcome news. He would later recall being summoned to the office ofKenneth Adam, the BBC's Director of Television, to be told that as a result of BBC2 being given the go-ahead the Drama Department would now have a 40 per cent budget increase. Newman said:

Of course, that opened the door. I could then hire people whose work I liked. So I put the word around, and many of the directors and writers who worked for me at ABC - Philip Saville, Ted Kotcheff, Peter Luke and so on - came over to join me at the BBC.

One of the far-reaching decisions Newman made during January 1963 was to disband the Children's Department at the BBC, meaning that every children's drama programme would now be made by the Drama Department.Further fundamental changes to working practices followed. Newman had found the Drama Department an unwieldy beast and impossible to control by himself. He therefore took the decision to break it down into three separate departments: Series, Serials, and Plays - each of which had its own head with direct control but doing his bidding.In addition, Newman gradually abandoned the all-in-one producer/director role, replacing it with the production-team style used greatly by ITV and, hitherto, to a far lesser degree by the BBC. Directors would be appointed - either from staff or on a freelance basis - to make individual episodes or programmes, whereas producers would now act in a more

executive capacity, with total financial and artistic control over a specific project. A story editor would also form a permanent part of the team, and their job would be to find writers and work with them to produce scripts. A move that would take some three months to fully put into place, this brave new world of drama production would ultimately see the Script Department become mostly redundant, leading to its eventual closure.DuringMarch 1963, Newman would also hold talks withDonald Baverstock,pictured left, newly promoted from being BBC TV's Assistant Controller of Programmes to the role of Chief of Programmes for BBC1 (in anticipation of the launch of BBC2), andJoanna Spicer,pictured far left, the Assistant Controller (Planning) Television, on the need for a new drama serial to plug an important gap in the Saturday-evening schedule.

Here's what Newman would later say about it:

As Head of the Drama Group, I was privy to problems of scheduling. Probably articulated by Donald Baverstock or [Controller of Programmes] Stuart Hood, there was a gap in the ratings on Saturday afternoons between BBC's vastly popular sports coverage [Grandstand], ending at 5.15, and the start at 5.45 of an equally popular pop music programme [Juke Box Jury].

What was between them was, I vaguely recall, a children's classic drama serial, ie, Charles Dickens dramatisations, etc. This could be moved to Sunday if the Drama Department could come up with something more suitable.

So, we required a new programme that would bridge the state of mind of sports fans and the teenage pop music audience while attracting and holding the children's audience accustomed to their Saturday-afternoon serial . . . The problem was, as I saw it, that it had to be a children's programme and still attract adults and teenagers. And also, as a children's programme, I was intent upon it containing basic factual information that could be described as educational - or, at least, mind-opening for them.

Among the possibilities was a series centring on two lads in a boys' school, but Newman later settled on a science-fiction show. He gave a general outline of his idea to Baverstock and Spicer, who were extremely positive about it, and Newman subsequently askedDonald Wilson, head of the still-remaining Script Department, to think of format ideas for a 52-week science-fiction series made up of shorter serials. A meeting in Wilson's office was then scheduled for26th Marchto talk about suggestions for the new series, using theApril 1962andJuly 1962Survey Group reports concerning science-fiction as the basis for discussion.

Back in December theBBFCclassifieda trailer for Second Doctor storyThe Ice Warriors- this trailer has now been confirmed for the forthcomingThe Aztecs - Special EditionDVD, though it should be noted that, as the name implies, the trailer illustrates a release that is "Coming Soon". Restoration Team memberSteve Robertsclarified:

I think you'll find The Ice Warriors has moved further back in the schedule. These things happen. It's one of the reasons we no longer put "Coming Soon" on the trailers, now it's simply "Doctor Who on DVD".

Though the trailer indicates that the story is to be released, there is no indication as yet if the new DVD presentation will also feature animated recreations of the missing episodes two and three in the same way as this week's release ofThe Reign of Terror. Steve Roberts has reported previously, however, that the DVD would include the reconstruction of those episodes that appeared on the original VHS release back in 1998.The official confirmation of story releases beyondThe Aztecswill be announced later in the year.Meanwhile, the colour restoration work undertaken onThe Mind of Evilis almost complete, with the Restoration Teamreportingon Monday:"At TV Centre, grading episode one of The Mind of Evil - back in colour and looking stunning!". Unlike episodes two to six, which contained thechromadot informationenablingRichard Russellto restore their original colour, the first had no such detail and needed to be painstakingly coloured from scratch byStuart HumphryesandPeter Crocker.The fruits of everybody's efforts will be premiered at the BFI on10th March. The DVD release of the story has yet to be announced.

Wednesday, 30 January 2013

North American publisher Vertical confirmed with ANN on Tuesday that it will release Iqura Sugimoto's manga adaptation of Mamoru Hosoda's Summer Wars film.
Vertical added that the manga will be released in two 300-page volumes, and will also include the color pages and extras featured in Kadokawa Shoten's original release.

The first volume is scheduled for release on October 22, and the second volume is scheduled to ship in December.
Sugimoto serialized the manga in Kadokawa Shoten's Young Ace magazine from the magazine's inaugural issue in July 2009 to May 2010. Kadokawa Shoten then published the manga in three book volumes.

Yumehito Ueda drew a separate Summer Wars King Kazuma vs. Queen Oz manga spinoff in Kadokawa Shoten's Monthly Comp Ace magazine from 2009 to 2010.
The original movie opened in Japan in July 2009, and Funimation released it in North America. Udon Entertainment confirmed earlier this month that it will release the Summer Wars: Material Book in North America on May 7.

To celebrate the collaboration between the upcoming Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods (Dragon Ball Z: Kami to Kami) movie and Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) Japan, seven restaurants in major Japanese cities will start cosplaying their Colonel Sanders statues as the anime's Son Goku on February 15. Each of the statues will also hold one of the seven star-studded Dragon Balls. The cosplaying statues will be at:

Sapporo, Hokkaido

Sendai, Miyagi

Ebisu, Tokyo

Sakae, Nagoya, Aichi

Osaka

Hakata, Fukuoka

Okinawa

All KFC restaurants in Japan will begin offering meal sets with "Light Up! Dragon Bottles" and five kinds of packs on February 28. Some of the items offered include a "Dream Dragon Radar detector."

Update: As seen in several anime, almost all Japanese KFC restaurants dress up their Colonel Sanders statues as Santa Claus during the holidays, to promote the modern Japanese tradition of eating fried chicken on Christmas.

The BBChas announcedthat actorDavid Bradleywill playWilliam Hartnellin the upcoming docudramaAn Adventure in Space and Time, detailing events leading to the creation ofDoctor Whofifty years ago.Bradley is best known for playing Hogwarts caretaker Argus Filch in theHarry Potterfilm series. He is also an established theatre actor with a career that includes a Laurence Olivier Award for a supporting role in a production ofKing Lear.This won't be Bradley's first involvement with the worlds ofDoctor Who. He played Solomon in last year's episodeDinosaurs on a Spaceship, and he provided the voice of the Shansheeth in the 2010Sarah Jane AdventuresstoryDeath of the Doctor.An Adventure in Space and Timewill tell the story behind the creation ofDoctor Whoand the many personalities involved. The BBC’s Head of DramaSydney Newman, credited with the creation of the show, will be portrayed by Shakespearean actorBrian Cox, who voiced the elder Ood in the 2009Doctor WhoepisodeThe End of Time.Doctor Who's first producer,Verity Lambert, will be played byCall the MidwifestarJessica Raine, while the director of the first serial,Waris Hussein, will be played bySacha Dhawan, best known for his appearances inThe History BoysandLast Tango In Halifax.Commenting on his upcoming role, Bradley said:

I’m absolutely thrilled. I first heard about this role from Mark [Gatiss] while watching the Diamond Jubilee flotilla from the roof of the National Theatre. When he asked if I would be interested, I almost bit his hand off! Mark has written such a wonderful script not only about the birth of a cultural phenomenon, but a moment in television’s history. William Hartnell was one of the finest character actors of our time and as a fan I want to make sure that I do him justice. I’m so looking forward to getting started.

What a cast! I'm utterly delighted that everyone's favourite Time Lord will be in such brilliant and stellar company. We have a terrific team who can't wait to tell the fascinating and surprising story of how the Doctor began his journey through Space and Time.

The readthrough for the drama took place yesterday, with Gatiss describing the day as"thrilling and moving". Filming starts at the beginning of February at BBC Television Centre before moving to Wimbledon Studios. It is being produced byMatt Strevens(Misfits,Skins) and directed byTerry McDonough(Breaking Bad,The Street).The film is a co-production between BBC America and BBC Cymru Wales and will air both sides of the Atlantic in November, after being premièred at the BFI in London.

The actor Bernard Horsfall has died at the age of 82.
He appeared in 14 episodes of Doctor Who, alongside the second, third and fourth Doctors.
Born on 20th November 1930 in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, Horsfall had a long career in film and television in the UK, including roles in the feature films On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Gandhi and Braveheart.

He appeared in many classic television dramas including Casualty, Agatha Christie: Poirot, The Bill, The Jewel in the Crown, Juliet Bravo, Minder, When the Boat Comes In, Within These Walls, Jackanory, Elizabeth R, Doomwatch, Out of the Unknown, Softly Softly, Dr. Finlay's Casebook and Z Cars. He also played the respected doctor Philip Martel in the Channel Islands wartime drama Enemy at the Door, which ran for 26 episodes between 1978 and 1980.
Horsfall's first appearance in Doctor Who came in the 1968 story The Mind Robber, where he played Lemuel Gulliver, encountered by the second Doctor in the Land of Fiction.

After a small role as the First Time Lord in the final Troughton story The War Games, Horsfall returned to the series in 1973, playing the Thal Taron in the six-part story Planet of the Daleks, working with the third Doctor to defeat the Daleks on the planet Spiridon.
His final role in Doctor Who is arguably the one he is most famous for, playing Chancellor Goth in the 1976 story The Deadly Assassin.

His most famous scene involved a battle with the fourth Doctor inside the Matrix with the climax of episode three showing the Doctor being held underwater by Goth. The sequence prompted complaints from the TV campaigner Mary Whitehouse and was edited from repeat showings.
Horsfall returned to the world of Doctor Who in 2003 when he played Arnold Baynes in the Big Finish audio play Davros.
The actor, who was due to attend the 2013 Gallifrey One convention next month, collapsed and died this morning.

The Whole Hog Theatre company has announced that it is looking for set assistants to construct and dress the set for its its upcoming stage adaptation of Hayao Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke. The deadline for applications is Friday February 1.
The company said in October 2012 that all its positions were unpaid and voluntary.From the site:

The set for Whole Hog Theatre's Princess Mononoke is being built, and we're looking for set assistants to help construct and dress it.Anyone with experience in model making, carpentry, sculpture, painting, or with related skills, is welcome to apply. We need people to help with creating Princess Mononoke's forests from recycled materials; an understanding of the original film, a good imagination, and an ability to think creatively about how to use the materials we've got rather than running to a timber yard are the main things we're looking for.Successful applicants will be invited to come along to our workshop in Leamington Spa for however much time they can spare– if you've got between one morning and four days a week, we'll be able to make use of you. Work will begin in early February and will continue until we whisk the set off to London for our get-in on March 31st.Whole Hog Theatre aims to support emerging artists by offering a chance of involvement regardless of previous experience. We look for talent, commitment and determination in our applicants.Please send a CV and a cover letter explaining why you would like to be involved in the project to our set designer, Polly Boon, at polly@wholehogtheatre.com.As we're not necessarily looking for a long list of work experience, feel free to add in personal projects; if you're not sure whether something's relevant, send us a picture anyway. Anything to help us gauge your creative style and skills is welcome!Application deadline is midnight on Friday 1st February.

The play sold out within 72 hours of its announcement. It is due to be performed at London's New Diorama Theatre from April 2 to April 6, 2013.In November 2012, Whole Hog Theatre ran a successful Kickstarter campaign. Its purpose was, in the words of the play's producers, to take the play further and "perform it to as many people, and in as many places, as possible."

Diamond Comics, the main distributor for comic books in North America, has published a preview of the first issue of IDW's new Doctor Who comic, Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time. The first five pages of issue #1 can be read in PDF format here.
As previously reported, Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time is written by Scott and David Tipton. Each issue will feature each of the eleven Doctors in turn, with art by a different artist.

The first issue's art is by Simon Fraser; the second issue, featuring the Second Doctor, will be illustrated by Lee Sullivan; Mike Collins will tackle the Third Doctor in the third issue, and the fourth issue will have art by Gary Erskine. Artists on the remaining issues have yet to be announced.
Interested readers can find interviews with both the Tiptons at Comic Book Resources, with Scott Tipton at Comic Book Therapy, and with Simon Fraser at downthetubes.net (though some readers may consider some of the promotional material in those interviews to be spoilers).

The first issue will be available in comic stores and via download at Comixology.com this Wednesday, January 30. North American readers who prefer their comics in old-fashioned paper-and-ink format can find their nearest comic store via the Comic Shop Locator.

Monday, 28 January 2013

In Ancient Times, the Darkness Species Devoss (Ankokushuu Debos) landed upon the Earth. Those who fought against it at the time were none other than the Dinosaurs.

The Wise God, Torin chose 10 Dinosaurs, and placed their souls within mechanical bodies, making them into "ZyuDenRyu." They fiercely fought back against Devoss, which ended up having his soul frozen. It sank into the sea; immersed in ice.
Now we shift to the present age...

In order to carry out the revival of Master Devoss (Shukun Devoss), his subordinates began their plans — inhaling the souls of men, and offering them up to Devoss. Once more, the sky is covered with ominous clouds, and ice age began, and the time of civilization's extinction is at hand!
As a counter measure, Torin searches for present day champions, humans, who are able to fight against the ZyuDenRyu, and unite their souls. These people will be known as the "People of the Strong Dragon" (Kyoukiryu no Sha).

Kyoryuger for short.
Under the command of Torin, the Kyoryuger rise to this challenge!

Manga Entertainment is releasing Makoto Shinkai's feature film Journey to Agartha on Monday January 28. Journey to Agartha (aka Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below) is a family fantasy film, about a young Japanese girl who travels to a fantastic underground world.

The Collector's Edition combo pack (right) will include one blu-ray disc and two DVD discs, as well as an artbook. There will also be separate Blu-ray and DVD editions.
MVM is releasing the 13-part TV series CANAAN as a box-set (left). The series is set two years after the Tokyo district of Shibuya was ravaged by a biological terrorist attack.

Maria Osawa was saved when her father inoculated her against the virus, but she is left with partial amnesia from the shock. From the MVM page: "Colors have scent. Sounds possess images. In this future world, where biochemical weapons have changed the game, an unlucky few have their senses blended. They are gifted with abilities beyond what normal humans feel.

They possess synesthesia. This makes them the perfect assassin... and the perfect target."
101 Films is releasing a new DVD edition of the violent 2004 series Elfen Lied, about a vulnerable-seeming girl who is really a superhuman killing machine. The four-disc edition (right) will contain a double-sided poster. The series was previously released by ADV Films, but this edition is now deleted. The BBFC has described the series as containing strong bloody violence, horror and nudity

Manga Entertainment has announced on its fourteenth podcast that it has acquired the following titles:
- K-ON! The Movie - DVD and Blu-Ray 'later in the year' - August or September 'if we're lucky.' Jerome Mazandarani 'teased' that Manga was also likely to release the second TV season of K-ON!- Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine - Complete Series Collection on DVD and Blu-Ray in the third quarter of 2013 ('during the summer holidays').- KenIchi the Mightiest Disciple - released as two four-disc DVD box sets, first series released this June. (DVD only.)- The original Last Exile series, also from GONZO, will be released on DVD as a Complete Series Collection on June 17, with a retail price of £39.99. As with K-ON, Mazandarani 'teased' that Manga was likely to also release Last Exile -Fam, The Silver Wing- in 2013.- The original anime version of Hellsing, as a four-disc DVD box-set.- The Production I.G feature film Loups=Garous - The Motion Picture is also being released in the second quarter.Also, the Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt Blu-ray/DVD combo pack is confirmed for June 24. Mazandarani said the combo pack format was decided in order to 'add value' for purchasers; also so that retailers of both formats would take it. The DVD version will stay on shelves.The extra OAV episode ("Drifters of the Dead") on the reissued Highschool of the Dead will be subtitled-only, unless Sentai dubs it. It was not offered to Manga when the series was originally released by the company. Manga is investigating ways of making the episode available as an individual disc.The Fairy Tale Complete Season 1 collection will be released on June 17

Rumors of the sixth usually come around the time the new sentai premiere. This is the first Sixth Ranger rumor from Dukemon22. It is that there will be a Sixth Ranger and it will be KyoryuGold. But take this rumor as a grain of salt. Torin (the mentor) will transform using JyuDenChi #6, Pteragoudon (Pteradon), becoming the Tsubasa no Yuusha, KyouryuGold! Also, someone has claimed to see the new toy catalog. Dukemon22's theory is that Torin is like DekaMaster and there might be another Kyoryuger. There is so far 23 batteries, maybe there will be way more.

Torin, the Sage God (Torin Kenshin) the mentor Kyoryuger, and their stone base, the Spirit Base. Torin, is the mentor of Kyoryuger.

Dantetsu Kiryu, Daigo's father (KyoryuRed), played by Shinji Yamashita, gave her a pendant with amber.

Sister Nobuharuof KyoryuBlue played by Ayumi Kinoshita (DekaYellow).

Soji's father (KyoryuGreen), played by Junichi Haruta.

Best friend of Ian (KyoryuBlack) played by Kenji Ebisawa (Go-On Black).

1 - Red GABUTYRA (Tyrannosaurus + Gaburi (bite))

2 – Black PARASAGUN (Parasaurolophus + Gun (pistolet))

3 - Blue STEGOTCHI (Stegosaurus + Stitch (punch))

4 - Green ZAKUTOR (ZakuZaku Velociraptor + (strong))

5 - Pink DRICERA (Triceratops + Drill (drill))

6 - Gold PTERAGODON (Pteranodon)

7 - Cyan ANKYDON (DonDon + Ankylosaurus (strike))

8 - Brown BUNPACHY (pachycephalosaurs)

9 - Purple PLESION (Plesiosaurus)

10 - Silver BRAGIGAS (Brachiosaurus)

11 - Yellow DEINOCHASER (Deinonychus + Chaser (hunter))

12 - Dark Orange DEINOSGRANDER (Deinodon)

13 - Cobalt Blue KENTROSPIKER (Kentrosaurus)

14 - Magenta STYMERO (MeroMero + Styracosaurus (soft))

15 - Scarlet ALLOMERAS (MeraMera + Allosaurus (inflamed))

16 - Indigo BIYONSMO (Seismosaure + BiyonBiyon)

17 - Salmon OVIWRAP (Oviraptor + Wrap (wrap))

18 - Lavender IGURANODON (GuraGura + Iguanodon (wobbly))

19 - White TUPERANDA (Tupandactyle + Perapera)

20 - Dark Green GURUMMONITE (Ammonite GuruGuru + (spin))

21 - Blue ARCHENORON (Archelon NoroNoro + (slow))

22 - Red PUKUPTOR (+ Fukuiraptor PukuPuku (swell))

23 - Dark Grey FUTUBAIN (Futabasaurus)

[Color names and name explanations may vary]

They will face Army DeVoss (DeVoss Gun in Japanese), directed by Chaos, the Priest of the Hundred Faces (Hyakumen Shinkan Chaos). Their goal is to revive DeVoss, an entity in which each army general seems to be a part. The army consists of the following general

* Dogold, Knight of Wrath

* Candelilla, Knight of Joy

* Aigaron, Knight of Sadness

* Luckyuro, Knight of Amusement

Each general will be able to create DevoMonsters to counter Kyoryuger. The Zori He will also have a giant form called Kyodai Zori He (Zori Giant Soldier).